Safety-guard for street-cars



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Shet 1.

G. T. FOSTER. SAFETY GUARD FOR STREET CARS.

No. 574,898, Patented Jan. 12, 1897.

Inventor,

(No Model.) 2' sheets-sheet 2.

G.T.POSTER.' SAFETY GUARD FOR STREET CARS;

No. 574,898. v Patented Jan. 12, 1897.

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UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

GEORGE T. FOSTER, OF ROCHESTER, NE\V YORK.

SAFETY-GUARD FOR STREET-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming partof Letters Patent No. 574,898, dated January12, 1897.

Application filed November 14, 1895, Serial No. 568,912. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE T. FOSTER, of Rochester, in the county ofMonroe and State of New York, have invented a certain new and usefulImprovement in Safety-Guards for Street-Cars; and I do hereby declarethat the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same,reference being had to the drawings accompanying this application.

My improvement relates to street car guards in which a net attached to ajointed frame is hung in advance of the car and is capable of beingturned up out of the way when not in use. In general features it issimilar to that patented by me February 6, 1894, No. 514,121. r

The invention consists in the special combination and arrangement ofparts hereina street-car.

after described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the apparatusattached to one end of Fig. 2 is a side elevation. Fig. 3 is a plan viewof the attachment removed from place. Fig. 4: is a longitudinal sectionof a portion of one side of the frame, showing the sliding attachment.Fig. 5 is an enlarged cross-section of the same. Fig. 6 is an enlargedView of one of the tightening devices and one corner of the net.

A indicates an ordinary street-car. B is the net attached in front ofthe same, said net being made of rope, cable, or any other suitablematerial. The frame for the attachment of the net is as follows:

C O are two angle-irons permanently attached to the front of the car andinclining downward and outward. D D are tubular arms pivoted at a a tothese irons and extending forward in a downwardly-inclined direction. Inthese tubular arms are spiral springs 19 b.

E is a buffer-rod consisting of a piece of pipe or rod extendingcrosswise of the track and running near thereto. Its ends 0 o are bentat right angles and enter the open ends of the tubular arms D D and bearagainst the springs b b. The springs hold the bufferrod outward, but incase the buffer-rod strikes an obstruction in the road-bed it yields andslides back and clears the obstruction, thus preventing the guard frombeing broken. If it strikes aperson, the contact is near the feet,

the recoil preventing injury, and the person is thrown over on thenet,which catches and holds him safely. The buffer-rod is held inposition by bolts d d, resting loosely in the ends 0 o and slidingthrough slots ff in opposite sides of the tubular arms D D. These slotsgage the throw of the buffer-rod and prevent it from being forced out ofplace. The ends 0 o of the buffer-rod have frictionrollers j j restinginside the tubular arms and rolling against the sides to lessenfriction. The rollers stand at right angles to each other, as shown.

F is a stiff cross-bar in the rear of the buffer-rod, connectingthe twotubular arms D D and keeping them in place. The net Bis attached at itsupper end by hooks g g to rings on the end of the car and at its lowerend to hooks h h, attached to the buffer-rod, standing thereby in aninclined position, as shown.

G G are two chains, one on each side of the net, the lower ends beingattached to the outer ends of the tubular arms D D and the upper ends toturnbuckles H H, which are attached to the hooks g g on the end of thecar. The chains are provided with loops i 2', into which the net ishooked. These chains give strength and stability to the sides of the netand support the same at a given height, so that when the net isdepressed by the weight of a body the sides remain elevated, and the netthen forms a bag which holds the body and prevents it from falling ofi.The chains can be used effectively without the turnbuckles, but thelatter are desirable to take up slack.

I is a board attached to the net in such position as to rest in front ofand cover the end of the car-bumper and draw-bar, thereby serving as ashield to prevent contact with said parts if a person is thrown upon thenet, and also forming a large surface to strike upon. If desired, it maybe padded. Its position is such that when the frame is folded up againstthe car the board folds in flatwise with the net and is then locatedabove the bumper and draw-head, so that a trailer can be readilyconnected with the draw=bar, the net and the board both standing abovethe bumper and coupling. By thus folding the parts up the cars can behoused end to end without loss of space.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

1. I11 a safetyguard for streetcars, the combination of a pivoted frame,a butter-rod with bent ends resting in the outer tubular ends of theframe, springs for forcing the rod outward, a net attached at one end tothe car and at the other to the buffer-rod, and a stiff board forming apad attached to the flexible net and covering the draw-head, and soarranged that when the frame is turned up the board folds in flatwisewith the net and above the draw-head, as herein shown and described.

52. In a street-car guard, the combination, with the flexible net B,attached at one en d to the ear and at the other to the buffer-rod ofthe supporting-frame, of the board I attached to the meshes of the netand covering the draw-head of the car, as and for the purpose specified.

3. In a street-car guard, the combination of the tubular arms D D, thebuffer-rod E pro vided with bent ends entering the arms, thefrietion-rollersj j attached to the bent ends and standing at rightangles to each other, the springs b b for forcing the bent ends outward,and the bolts (Z d attached to the bent ends and playing loosely inslots ff 0]"; the tubular bars, as and for the purpose specified.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

GEO. T. FOC'JTER.

\Vitncsses:

R. F. Osooon, Gno. A. GILLET'IE.

